Woman sexually assaulted at Cork spa after masseur asked if she would like a surprise, court hears
Olivia Kelleher
A woman jumped from a massage table in shock after a masseur in a hotel spa in Cork sexually assaulted her shortly after he asked her if she would like a ‘surprise’ at the end of the session.
Lenon De Souza Seara of Granary Court, North Ring Road in Cork appeared before Cork Circuit Criminal Court having pleaded guilty to the sexual assault of a woman at the hotel spa where he was employed on July 4th 2024.
Sgt Brendan McBridge told Judge Helen Boyle that the 35-year-old hotel employee, who is a native of Brazil, asked the 40-year-old woman if she would like a surprise. She was under the impression that the surprise might involve additional oils.
The woman was lying on a table with a towel wrapped around her. She had a pair of disposable underwear on and her face was covered with a small towel. The court heard that she was completely shocked when Mr De Souza Seara licked her vagina.
Her victim impact statement was read in to evidence by Sgt McBridge. In it she said that she felt completely violated by what had occurred in the hotel spa.
“I was flustered and vulnerable. For context I was wearing disposable underpants, had a towel over my face and my body was draped with a towel. So effectively I was otherwise completely naked.
“When the incident occurred, I immediately sprang up and took the face towel off, basically leaving me even more exposed, shocked and repeating, "No no no", I was naked and frazzled.”
The woman left the spa in the immediate aftermath of the incident. She reported the matter to gardai the following day after discussing it with her husband. She said that she flip flopped between speaking out on what occurred and never mentioning it again.
“After all I was physically unharmed. To speak up catapulted me into a process I didn't intentionally sign up for
“He (the defendant) said it was a misunderstanding. Ok, so it was a misunderstanding. What does that mean to me? Is it somehow my fault? Did I not pick up on something earlier? Was he testing me all along? What was the motivation? How far was he going to go? How many times has he done this before? How did I not gauge it and stop it earlier?
“These questions I will never really know the answer to, but they are the ones that keep looping in my head. I feel so naive and stupid. How did I not know how to speak until it was too late? How far would it have gone? I feel like I can't trust my own observations and missed the danger signs. That makes me question myself as a person.
“I feel bad for what he is going through and wonder how he is supporting himself after his loss of earnings - It also makes me mad that I feel responsible for that. I did nothing wrong. I was violated. I spoke up. I have to live with the unanswered questions.”
Defence barrister Elaine Audley BL said her client had co operated with the garda and made full admissions to them. Ms Audley said that client accepted full responsibility for his actions which he said arose due to a misunderstanding on his part.
Ms Audley said that Mr De Souza Seara was exposed to sexualised behaviour from a young age and had certain difficulties with interacting socially. He had grown in poverty and a brother of his was murdered.
She said that her client had lost his job arising out of the incident. He apologised for his actions. He is retraining and no longer works in the spa industry. Ms Audley said her client would be prepared to leave Ireland in order to avoid a custodial sentence.
Judge Helen Boyle remanded Mr De Souza Seara in custody for sentencing on May 21st next. Judge Boyle indicated that the case merited a custodial sentence.
If you have been affected by any of the issues raised in this article, you can call the national 24-hour Rape Crisis Helpline at 1800-77 8888, access text service and webchat options at drcc.ie/services/helpline/ or visit Rape Crisis Help.
